Spiricom

information would not convey the importance of some of the items. So before we spell out the benefits as we see them, we would like to share with you the thoughts in Meek's mind when the list of benefits was formalized. A memo from him to his associates on July 4, 1976 reads in part: Two hundred years ago 56 courageous and far-seeing men devised and signed a "Declaration of Independence." They put their reliance in Divine Providence and pledged to each other their lives, their fortunes and their honor. These were men of means and education. They paid dearly for their action. Five were tortured and killed as traitors. Nine fought and died in the war which followed. Many lost all of their belongings and they and their families were forced to move frequently. Many died in poverty.

The nation-state which grew and flourished as a result of the vision and spiritual insight of these men became the light of the world. No other nation in the world's history has contributed as much to the development of human dignity, and had such a beneficial impact on other nation-states around the world.

These two centuries have seen the birth and growth of many fields of science.

The ways in which these sciences have changed and are changing the material life of Man stagger the imagination. Certainly in the main these advances in Man's material well-being are beneficial.

It is now plain for everyone to see that, unfortunately, mankind's advances in the material world have far outstripped his rate of growth in wisdom and spiritual understand. After two devastating world wars there are many signs that we face the prospect of a third - and final - world war. The advance in man's capability for mass extermination has grown exponentially, precisely as outlined in an analysis which I wrote in London on July 4, 1943 and distributed to my close friends as a Christmas and New Years greeting in December 1943. My comments and the accompanying political cartoons which I devised, set forth the need for recognizing Man's INTER-dependence.

It is with profound regret that these last 38 years have done nothing but confirm that analysis. Every "Advanced" and "emerging" Page 78 nation in the world today is spending vast sums in an armament race to outdo its neighbors. At least ten nations have acquired the capability to wage nuclear warfare - and very few indeed of these nations have acquired the restraint which could make them refrain from using these weapons of mass destruction. Only a small proportion of the people alive today have learned the eternal truth of the statement that "Those who choose to live by the sword will die by the sword."

Now, as we enter the last quarter of this century and start on the third century of our nation's history, is there nothing that can be done to arrest this headlong flight to oblivion? Is man totally incapable of any action which can redress the evolutionary imbalance between his materialistic and his spiritual development? At this crucial time in the life of our nation and all nations are there no men of vision who can see the path which can lead to a brighter future? Dare we despair and cast our lot with those who advised Job to "Curse the Lord and die"? Is there no way that man can be made aware of his INTERdependence - made aware that by all men working together, life on this planet can become a veritable Garden of Eden?